Stegeman is undergoing the final phase of more than $20-million in upgrades over the past several years. The arena’s inner bowl is the focus of the final portion of the project and will feature a center-hung scoreboard, new seats, significantly upgraded sound and lighting systems and additional LED signage.

“The final stage of the Stegeman renovations is finally here, which will be the most drastic stage of the project,” Fox said “Obviously, the installation of the glass and work on the concourse was significant, and the building looks different from the outside. I think the interior will look just as significantly different as the outside. I also think you’re going to see the game experience change greatly because of the center-hung scoreboard and video boards and all the other things that can be done with that will be a big upgrade for our game atmosphere and our fans.”

Design work with the architecture team from HOK continues on the new, standalone football complex, the planned $60 million project that will house all of our football team's daily operations and be located adjacent to the current football practice fields. In addition, the project includes a new dining hall that will service all 500-plus of our Gator student-athletes.

The planned upgrades to Katie Seashole Presley Stadium (softball) and McKethan Stadium (baseball) are also front and center. The selection process to choose the designers for softball is underway, with the same for baseball beginning shortly. Having myself now gone through a spring in Gainesville, I'm more excited than ever about the opportunities to enhance the fan and student-athlete experiences for these highly successful Gator teams. We will have more details on these projects in the weeks ahead as we move forward, but it's safe to say that the finished products will include plenty of shade for our loyal Gator fans!

Here are a few other facility items of note: the swimming and diving natatorium will be getting a much-needed new scoreboard in time for this fall's events … Installation of new LED 'ribbon' boards at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium occurs this summer. These boards will be on the upper deck fascia in the north and south end zones, and provide more real-time information for fans at The Swamp … The highly popular court projection that was used prior to the UF-UK men's basketball game at Exactech Arena in February will become a regular part of the O'Connell Center. The system used for the projection is being installed permanently, which will allow for use at all Gator home events in the O'Dome (volleyball, gymnastics, women's and men's basketball).

#WeChomp

In May, we launched a new social media initiative to engage our fans all across the world, #WeChomp.

The two architectural firms also designed a previous plan to overhaul Rupp and the convention center at the same time. The more than $350 million project was suspended in June 2014 after the group failed to get state money for the much larger project. The project was then scaled back.

“I’ve had people stop me in front of the Hilton and ask me ‘Where’s Rupp Arena?’” said Bill Owen, president and CEO of Lexington Center. The Hilton is across the street from Rupp Arena.

By not expanding the upper bowl of Rupp Arena, the group saved about $100 million, said Owen.

Thanks to new technology that was not available three years ago, Lexington Center can replace the benches on the second tier of Rupp with chair-backed seats. Owen said he will travel soon to a stadium that used that technology to see if it will work in Rupp Arena.

The addition of the chair-backed seats would result in fewer seats in the very top portion of the arena, Lexington Center officials said. The exact number has not yet been determined.

The more you think about Vanderbilt football moving off campus and sharing a stadium with a Major League Soccer team at The Fairgrounds Nashville, the more it grows on you.

For example, I’ve been thinking about this quite a bit for the past few months and the idea has been upgraded in my mind from “a nuclear winter’s worth of dumb” to “terrible.” By the time they break ground in a few years, it could rise as high as “unfortunate.”

That’s about my ceiling. Not so for everyone, including some folks in Vanderbilt athletics who have become so disillusioned by the inability to create funding momentum for a Vanderbilt Stadium makeover or replacement, they view this as the last life preserver.

They don’t believe there’s any way something will get done on campus, so the opportunity for brand-new digs at a reduced cost is worth moving three miles away and sharing a space with the MLS team the city hopes to land. This line of thinking speaks to the philosophical chasm between academics and athletics at Vanderbilt and to a lack of vision.

Someone has to see how damaging this would be to Vanderbilt football. Someone has to see how good things actually are on Vanderbilt football Saturdays, other than the state of the facility. Someone has to step forward and say “no thank you” on behalf of Vandy to Metro — Mayor Megan Barry

Rich McKay’s seats: From the “It Just Means More” files of the SEC, we bring you this nugget from a visit with the Atlanta Falcons president about Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the new home of the SEC title game. McKay said the project’s mission was to change the experience for the fan because the experience from home “is pretty good, and it’s not getting worse.”

“We don’t think technology is gonna be the solution,” he told me. “There aren’t people who go to games and try to watch replays on their phones. We do think that the fan wants to be treated in a way where their experience is special and to do that you’ve got to think about food, the way they get around the building—entry and exit and the seats they sit in."

The new stadium has 21-inch seats (arm to arm), up from the 19-inch seats in the Georgia Dome and from the 14 or 15-inch seats at many college stadiums. And that’s all of the seats, not just the ones at the premium level. Hopefully, the airlines are reading this.

Bulldogs, the last football team in the SEC to get a full-length indoor facility are reaping the benefits of it this year, and did so Thursday. Rather than work outside a fourth straight day, Kirby Smart took the team inside the $30.2 million facility.

Vanderbilt fans don’t want to share a new off-campus football stadium with a potential Major League Soccer expansion franchise.

That sentiment was repeated loudly by any Commodore fan willing to speak on the hot topic at Saturday’s Dore Jam, the annual Vanderbilt football fan event.

"College football is meant to be played on campus,” said fan Chris Gleason. “And you can’t tell me that it would be the same off campus. No one here actually believes that.”

Nashville is one of 12 cities vying for four MLS expansion franchises. If an MLS club comes to Music City, Vanderbilt is exploring the possibility of sharing a new stadium with the soccer team for its home football games at the Metro-owned Fairgrounds Nashville. The first two expansion cities will be chosen by the league’s board of directors as early as December.

NCAA released its annual Division I men’s basketball attendance report on Tuesday, and the new-look Exactech Arena/O’Connell Center resulted in a significant attendance boost for the Gators during the 2016-17 season.

The Gators averaged 10,690 fans in 10 home dates last season, above 100 percent capacity and more than 1,000 fans per game higher than the 2015-16 season (1,004 to be exact). Florida’s increase in attendance with the 14th highest in the nation and third highest in the SEC, behind just Missouri and South Carolina.

AL.com had a chance to explore Atlanta's brand new Mercedes-Benz Stadium on a walking tour Tuesday, and, aside from some rough edges, it is just about ready for prime time. The roof won't retract for the Alabama-FSU game (or any August/September events) as the roof's automation is fine-tuned and to save 70,000 people from the early September heat.

When you first enter your eyes will be drawn to the 1100-foot circular video screen -

As Kentucky played North Carolina in 2011, a camera mounted in the Rupp Arena ceiling rotated 360 degrees as it photographed the crowd. The idea behind the promotion was to invite UK fans to go online and identify themselves and their seat locations.

What the camera revealed stunned Bill Owen, the CEO and president of Lexington Center Corp.

“I was amazed by how many people in the first 10 rows were just like this,” Owen said as he brought his hands close to his face as if looking at a cellphone. “Wait! You’re in the eighth row of a University of Kentucky game at Rupp Arena. All you’re doing is looking at your 3-by-6-inch personal video screen?”

This made sense to Mike Fox, whose title at LCC is Information Technology Manager.

“People want to stay connected,” he said. “They still want to be able to talk to other people who are not there through their phone. They want to keep in touch while they’re at an event.”

Keeping in touch should be much easier for UK fans and other Rupp Arena patrons in the future. As part of a $15 million upgrade, LCC spent about $2 million to improve Wi-Fi in Rupp Arena, Heritage Hall and the Lexington Opera House. The $15 million upgrade also included the scoreboards/video boards over center court, the ribbon board advertising and a new sound system.

The new Wi-Fi, which had what Owen called a “soft opening” at UK’s Senior Night on Feb. 28, has 10 times the capacity of the old system. The response time will be noticeably faster. Maybe best of all, the Wi-Fi will work for non-Verizon customers. The previous system only accommodated devices that used Verizon.

LCC properties will have 470 “nodes” which help connect users to the network. Previously, there were 70.

The previous Wi-Fi setup in Rupp Arena generated “tons and tons of complaints,” Fox said. Access was limited to the media. The system became overloaded as fans learned the network and password used by media. The ability to make a cellphone call could be iffy.

“I’ve always believed a bad Wi-Fi is worse than no Wi-Fi,” Owen said. “It makes you more frustrated than if you had no Wi-Fi at all.”

If LCC officials needed more prodding to upgrade the Wi-Fi, it came from the NCAA. One of the new requirements to play host to NCAA Tournament games is reliable Wi-Fi availability for all fans. Rupp Arena is scheduled to hold first- and second-round games in 2021.

Owen, who now embraces “living our life looking at screens,” put the new, improved Wi-Fi system in the context of re-inventing Rupp Arena.

When asked about future Wi-Fi vistas Rupp Arena patrons can conquer, Owen spoke of fans watching one game on their phones while glancing at Kentucky’s game. Or vice versa. For instance, he said with a grin, New Year’s Eve could serve this purpose.

“Watch UK play in a bowl game on Dec. 31 while UK plays (against Georgia in basketball) at 6:30,” he said.

More seriously, Owen put the change in Wi-Fi in the broader context of a re-invented Rupp Arena.

The previous Wi-Fi system contributed “to the impression of Rupp Arena as antiquated, old-fashioned, archaic,” he said. “Not modern and contemporary. So with the center-hung (scoreboard), the Wi-Fi, these new elements, all of a sudden, at 41 years old, we’re relevant and contemporary.”

“While we plan to continue to support Nashville’s bid for an MLS team, we are not moving Vanderbilt football off campus,” the university’s statement reads. “Dudley Field will remain the home of Commodores football.

“To enhance opportunities for our students to branch out and experience more of Nashville, we are exploring the opportunity to lease the proposed new soccer stadium for one or two Vanderbilt events per year,” Vanderbilt’s statement says.

“If it meets the needs of our fans, students, alumni and team, this could also include leasing the stadium for a football game, similar to what we have done in the past with Nissan Stadium, which received a great response from our community.”

The proposed soccer stadium at the fairgrounds is part of Nashville's bid for an MLS expansion team. Vanderbilt's decision is not expected to hurt Nashville's chances of landing an MLS club. The league only cares that a stadium plan is secured.

For the past several games at Kroger Field, the music volume throughout the stadium has been minimal, and fans haven’t been happy about it. We’ve received countless messages, calls, and comments on the matter with those in attendance hoping for a louder, more energetic experience on gamedays.

Guy Ramsey at UK Athletics sent a response to these sound (or lack thereof) complaints, saying the speakers have been on, but they are still adjusting volume at games. He also mentioned that Kroger Field only has speakers in one end zone, and a permanent fix to sound issues would be to purchase a brand new (and expensive) sound system.

Jay Jacobs is scheduled to seek final project approval from the school's board of trustees for a new videoboard in the North end zone of Jordan-Hare Stadium and a new equestrian barn, as well as approval of project architects for player development facilities for baseball and softball and renovated locker rooms for men's and women's basketball.

Auburn associate vice president for facilities Dan King and Jacobs are scheduled to address the proposals before the board's property and facilities committee during the board of trustees meeting on Nov. 10. If approved, the various projects would then go to a vote of the full board, which agreed to initiate plans for the videoboard, baseball, softball and basketball projects during its meeting in September.

During that meeting, a more than 20-minute discussion raged as several board members questioned the impact of the proposed videoboard on the previously proposed more than $145 million renovation of the North end zone of Jordan-Hare Stadium. The board asked Jacobs to return this month with an updated plan for the North end zone project, which he said he "put that on the shelf (and) pulled out pieces," and details as to the master plan for athletics facilities.

University of Tennessee board of trustees will discuss an overview of the $340 million renovation that Neyland Stadium is scheduled to undergo. The project, which now includes additional funding for “improvements to the south end of the stadium and enhancements of the fan experience” is scheduled to begin in summer 2018.

First phase of the renovations will include:

Expansion and renovation of the south concourses of the stadium More restrooms along expanded south concourses More concession stands throughout the south concourses New entry towers/gates and plaza areas in the southwest and southeast corners of the stadium Improved stadium exterior to better integrate the stadium into the architectural fabric of the campus Adjusted south end zone field wall to improve player safety and conform to NCAA guidelines Kitchen and commissary to enable on-site catering and delivery of fresh food Premium spaces such as open-air suites, a field level club and ledge seating to meet market demands and capitalize on underutilized space

“Naturally, I know that some may wonder about the fact that we are making this huge step forward during a moment in our season during which our on-field results are admittingly disappointing,” Currie wrote. “In reality, the necessity of this undertaking and its impact on future generations of Tennessee fans transcends one game or one season for that matter.

“To quote General Neyland’s game maxim #3: ‘If at first the game or the breaks go against you, don’t let up. Put on more steam!’ In fact, the momentum of our fundraising over the last several months exceeds our expectations!”

Neyland Stadium will enter its 100th year of service in 2021, which is when this project is slated to be completed. Construction is expected to begin next summer.

“I haven’t been anywhere, well maybe Vanderbilt, and that’s no disrespect to Vanderbilt,” Saban said on Thursday. “Most of the time we have more fans than they have, and that’s a testament to our fans in that area.”

Ouch!

While that has to hurt the pride of Commodores fans, Saban does have a point. During the matchup between the two teams earlier this season, there was a lot more crimson in the stands than black and gold.

The agenda for today's Birmingham City Council meeting includes "a Resolution supporting $30 million for the 5-year (2018-2023) capital budget for Legion Field."

The resolution was submitted and recommended by City Councilman William Parker. Last month, Parker described his idea "to provide the necessary tools to make sure Legion Field is viable for the next 10 to 20 years."

Wait. What? Viable? For the next decade or two? Legion Field at 90 years old is barely serviceable now. It's a money pit, an albatross around the neck of UAB football and the special events held there from the Magic City Classic to the Birmingham Bowl.

If the goal is to revitalize the community around Legion Field and prepare it for life after the stadium shuts down, that's admirable. But it sounds as if Parker wants to put more lipstick on the dying stadium and keep it as this city's primary football facility into the foreseeable future.